Device and method for measuring gas concentration

This application is a U.S. National Stage Filing under 35 U.S.C. § 371 from International Application No. PCT/CN2020/114269, filed on Sep. 9, 2020, and published as WO2022/051947 on Mar. 17, 2022; the benefit of priority of which is hereby claimed herein, and which application and publication are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

The present disclosure relates to a field of instrument and equipment technology, and in particular, to a device and a method for measuring a gas concentration.

With a development of science and technology, it is sometimes required to measure a concentration state of a certain gas in a space in real time. For example, it is required to determine whether an amount of a gas extinguishing agent carried by an extinguishing system in a vehicle or aircraft is qualified, it is required to release the extinguishing agent to a to-be-protected space and record a volume concentration of the extinguishing agent at representative locations in each region of the to-be-protected space through a measuring system. A concentration value of the extinguishing agent must be higher than a known effective extinguishing concentration, and the effective extinguishing concentration refers to a concentration of the extinguishing agent sufficient to extinguish a fire that may occur in a protected region within a certain time.

Patent CN109540747A discloses an airborne measuring device for an extinguishing agent concentration in an aircraft power device cabin. However, the patent does not provide an implementation for a laminar flow differential pressure measuring device in a single channel measurement unit, which is difficult for those skilled in the art to be implemented. Patent CN103163046A discloses a device for measuring a concentration of a gas extinguishing agent. However, the patent uses an integral heating method for a constant temperature and constant current micro differential pressure generator, which is vulnerable to an environmental factor; the patent controls flows of four channels together by using a flow controller, which may cause the flow between the four channels to be unbalanced due to factors such as a blockage, a processing technology, etc., and lead to a measurement error. Patent CN110844118A discloses a testing device and method of testing a differential pressure in a porous structure. However, the patent uses a solution of immersing a perforated screen in oil, and the oil may cause a pollution in use, which may cause a difficulty in maintenance. Patent CN105424546 discloses a concentration measuring device for an extinguishing agent concentration measuring system. However, a through-hole solution adopted in the patent may bring an inconvenience to equipment processing; a solution of a pressure stabilizing cavity may cause a gas mixing and may be not conducive to improving a response time; a temperature sensor detects temperatures of a heating block and a pressure measuring block, instead of a temperature of gas. When an environment changes, a measurement accuracy may be affected.

Therefore, how to acquire a more accurate gas concentration measured result is an urgent technical problem to be solved.

a preheating module configured to preheat and perform flow conditioning on an input to-be-measured gas to output a first stage gas; a differential pressure conversion module connected to the preheating module, wherein the differential pressure conversion module is configured to allow the first stage gas flowing through the differential pressure conversion module to generate a differential pressure change value; and a processing module configured to acquire a volume concentration of the to-be-measured gas according to the differential pressure change value; wherein the differential pressure conversion module comprises a capillary laminar flow unit having a plurality of capillaries, and flow channels of the plurality of capillaries become a main channel of a gas flow, so as to form a laminar flow structure. An aspect of the present disclosure provides a device for measuring a gas concentration, including:

a gas flow channel configured to perform flow conditioning on the to-be-measured gas; a preheating module electric heating unit configured to heat the gas flow channel to conduct and heat the to-be-measured gas; and a preheating module temperature control unit configured to measure and regulate a temperature of the to-be-measured gas, and wherein the gas flow channel has no bending and is provided with a plurality of capillary pipelines. Optionally, the preheating module includes:

Optionally, the preheating module temperature control unit includes a preheating module thermocouple arranged perpendicular to a gas flow direction.

a differential pressure conversion module housing coated outside the capillary laminar flow unit, wherein an upstream differential pressure measuring hole is arranged at the differential pressure conversion module housing corresponding to an upstream end of the capillary laminar flow unit, and a downstream differential pressure measuring hole is arranged at the differential pressure conversion module housing corresponding to a downstream end of the capillary laminar flow unit; a differential pressure sensor having two ends respectively connected to the upstream differential pressure measuring hole and the downstream differential pressure measuring hole, wherein the differential pressure sensor is configured to measure a differential pressure between the differential pressure measuring holes; and a flow limiting element located at a downstream outlet of the differential pressure conversion module housing, wherein the flow limiting element is configured to maintain a constant volume flow flowing through the device for measuring a gas concentration. Optionally, the differential pressure conversion module further includes:

a differential pressure conversion module electric heating unit configured to heat the differential pressure conversion module; and a differential pressure conversion module temperature control unit configured to measure and regulate a temperature of the to-be-measured gas flowing through the capillary laminar flow unit and the flow limiting element, wherein the differential pressure conversion module temperature control unit comprises a differential pressure conversion module thermocouple arranged perpendicular to a gas flow direction. Optionally, the differential pressure conversion module further includes:

an upstream capillary rectifying element located between an upstream inlet of the differential pressure conversion module housing and the upstream differential pressure measuring hole; a downstream capillary rectifying element located between the downstream outlet of the differential pressure conversion module housing and the downstream differential pressure measuring hole; and an absolute pressure gauge arranged at the upstream differential pressure measuring hole, wherein the absolute pressure gauge is configured to monitor an absolute pressure value in a gas flow channel, so as to improve a measurement accuracy. Optionally, the differential pressure conversion module further includes:

a sleeve including a first sleeve and a second sleeve, wherein the first sleeve and the second sleeve are sleeved outside the plurality of capillaries from two sides, respectively; and an adhesive coated on an outer wall of the capillary and an inner wall of the sleeve, wherein the adhesive is configured to fix the plurality of capillaries, so that the plurality of capillaries are not moved under an action of a gas flow of the to-be-measured gas. Optionally, the capillary laminar flow unit further comprises:

LFE Optionally, a pipe diameter dof the capillary is expressed as:

V where μ is a dynamic viscosity of the to-be-measured gas, n is the number of capillaries, ρ is a density of the to-be-measured gas, Re is a Reynolds number, and Qis the flow.

1 operation S: performing a preheating treatment on the device for measuring a gas concentration; 2 operation S: inputting the to-be-measured gas in a space into the preheated device for measuring a gas concentration, and recording a differential pressure value; and 3 operation S: determining the concentration of the to-be-measured gas according to the differential pressure value and an empirical relationship between a volume concentration of the to-be-measured gas and the differential pressure value. Another aspect of the present disclosure provides a method for measuring a gas concentration, using the above-mentioned device for measuring a gas concentration to measure a concentration of a to-be-measured gas, the method for measuring a gas concentration includes:

1 11 operation S: injecting a to-be-measured gas with a concentration of 0 or a known concentration into the device for measuring a gas concentration; and 12 operation S: performing a heating through a preheating module electric heating unit and a differential pressure conversion module electric heating unit, so that temperature values measured by a preheating module thermocouple and a differential pressure conversion module thermocouple are stable and the same, so as to complete the preheating treatment. Optionally, the operation Sincludes:

1 2 3 4 61 5 64 6 62 7 8 9 10 65 11 12 69 12 1 12 2 12 3 12 4 13 68 13 1 13 2 13 3 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 51 1 51 2 51 3 51 4 63 66 67 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 86 82 83 84 85 housing base;housing upper cover;gas inlet and outlet panel;,gas inlet straight joint;,gas preheating module gas pipeline;,gas preheating module heating clamp block;gas preheating module electric heating unit;gas preheating module straight joint;gas preheating module gas low heat conduction hose;,gas preheating module temperature measurement tee joint;gas preheating module thermocouple;,differential pressure conversion module housing;-gas flow inlet;-gas flow outlet;-upstream differential pressure measuring hole;-downstream differential pressure measuring hole;,capillary laminar flow unit;-capillary;-first sleeve;-second sleeve;differential pressure conversion module electric heating unit;flow limiting element;differential pressure measuring hole joint;upstream differential pressure measuring hose;downstream differential pressure measuring hose;differential pressure sensor 90 degree elbow;differential pressure sensor installing clip;differential pressure conversion module low heat conduction hose;differential pressure conversion module temperature measurement tee;differential pressure conversion module thermocouple;differential pressure conversion module gas pipeline;flowmeter joint;flowmeter;flowmeter installing clip;front panel;flowmeter-to-gas outlet connecting hose;gas outlet panel installing straight joint;three-hole current signal aviation plug;two-hole power supply aviation plug;electrical rear panel;solid-state relay;power supply terminal;rocker switch;preheating module temperature controller;differential pressure conversion module temperature controller;differential pressure sensor;device for measuring gas concentration;fixing plug-in box of device for measuring a gas concentration;cooling and ventilating equipment plug-in box;keyboard/mouse tray;control device plug-in box;display;power supply plug-in box;cabinet;cabinet reserved space;cabinet wheel;rear access door;interface panel;side access door;-power output installing hole;-power input connector installing hole;-cabinet gas inlet bulkhead joint;-cabinet gas outlet bulkhead joint;electric heating silicone pad installing groove;upstream capillary rectifying element;upstream differential pressure measuring hole joint;downstream differential pressure measuring hole joint;downstream capillary rectifying element;micropore plate flow limiting element;differential pressure conversion module temperature measurement tee thermocouple installing hole;differential pressure conversion module temperature measurement tee;differential pressure conversion module temperature measurement tee gas flow outlet;upstream capillary rectifying element fixed hole;capillary laminar flow unit fixed hole;downstream capillary rectifying element fixed hole;gas inlet thermal baffle;upper thermal baffle;,side thermal baffle;thermocouple reserved hole on upper thermal baffle of gas preheating module;thermocouple reserved hole on upper thermal baffle of differential pressure conversion module;fixing bolt;bolt hole.

The present disclosure provides a device and method for measuring a gas concentration, which have a high measurement accuracy, may be calibrated, have a good repeatability, may adapt to a change in a test environmental factor, may be used to analyze whether the gas concentration meets a demand, and have a broad application prospect.

The technical solution of the present disclosure will be clearly and completely described below in combination with embodiments and the accompanying drawings in the embodiments. Obviously, described embodiments are only part, not all of embodiments of the present disclosure. Based on embodiments of the present disclosure, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without any inventive effort fall within the scope of protection of the present disclosure.

1 FIG. 8 FIG. a preheating module configured to preheat and perform flow conditioning on an input to-be-measured gas to output a first stage gas; a differential pressure conversion module connected to the preheating module, wherein the differential pressure conversion module is configured to allow the first stage gas flowing therethrough to generate a differential pressure change value, and wherein the differential pressure conversion module includes a capillary laminar flow unit having a plurality of capillaries; and a processing module configured to acquire a volume concentration of the to-be-measured gas according to the differential pressure change value. In embodiments of the present disclosure, a device for measuring a gas concentration is provided. In combination withto, the device for measuring a gas concentration includes:

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the device for measuring a gas concentration includes: a housing, a gas inlet, a gas preheating module, a differential pressure conversion module, a gas outlet, a differential pressure sensor, a temperature control element and an electrical interface. The gas inlet and the gas outlet are installed on the housing, and the gas inlet, the gas preheating module, the differential pressure conversion module and the gas outlet are connected sequentially through a gas pipeline element. The differential pressure sensor is installed on the differential pressure conversion module and fixed on the housing. The temperature control element is installed inside the housing. The electrical interface is connected to the differential pressure sensor and the temperature control element and fixed on the housing. The housing is used to fix components of a sensor and protect internal components from a mechanical and vibration damage and shield an electromagnetic interference; the gas inlet is used to connect a gas pipeline and provide an interface for a gas to flow out of the sensor; the gas outlet is used to connect the gas pipeline and provide an interface for the gas to flow out of the sensor; the gas preheating module is used to preheat and perform flow conditioning on an incoming measured gas; the differential pressure conversion module is used to convert a concentration of a measured gas into a differential pressure change; the differential pressure sensor is used to measure a differential pressure change value of the differential pressure conversion module; the temperature control element is used to control an operation of a heater according to a set value and a result of a gas flow temperature measurement, so as to control a gas flow temperature; the electrical interface is used to supply power to the device for measuring a gas concentration and output a measured result of the device. The measured gas flows in from a test space through the gas pipeline, and the measured gas flows out of the device after being sensed by the device for measuring a gas concentration.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the gas preheating module is composed of a gas preheating module gas inlet end, a gas preheating module gas outlet end, a gas flow channel, a heating element, and a temperature control unit. The gas preheating module gas inlet end is connected to a gas inlet, the gas preheating module gas outlet end is connected to the differential pressure conversion module, the gas preheating module gas inlet end is connected to the gas preheating module gas outlet end through the gas flow channel, and the temperature control unit and the heating element are installed on the gas flow channel. The gas preheating module gas inlet end is used to introduce a gas into the gas preheating module and realize a mechanical connection with the gas inlet; the gas preheating module gas outlet end is used to be connected to the differential pressure conversion module and deliver a preheated gas to the differential pressure conversion module; the gas flow channel is used to perform flow conditioning on the gas, and transfer a heat generated by the heating element into the gas to heat a gas flow; the heating element is used to heat the gas flow channel; and the temperature control unit is used to measure a gas flow problem after the gas flow channel is heated.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the gas flow channel has no bending, a heat exchange structure with heat exchange and performing flow conditioning functions is installed in the channel, and a heating component is installed outside the channel.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the temperature control unit is installed downstream of a gas flowing in the gas flow channel, and is located adjacent to the gas preheating module gas outlet end.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the differential pressure conversion module is composed of a capillary laminar flow unit, a flow limiting element, a differential pressure measuring hole, a gas flow temperature measuring section, a heating element, a flow indicator, and a differential pressure conversion module housing. A gas concentration difference conversion section housing is provided with a circular flow channel for a gas to flow. The circular flow channel is provided with a gas inlet and a gas outlet. The gas concentration difference conversion section housing is provided with two differential pressure measuring holes in a direction perpendicular to an axis of the circular flow channel. A spacing between projection points of axes of the differential pressure measuring holes on the axis of the circular flow channel is greater than a length of the capillary laminar flow unit, an axis of the capillary laminar flow unit coincides with the axis of the circular flow channel in the gas concentration difference conversion section housing, and the capillary laminar flow unit is installed between two differential pressure measuring holes. The heating element is installed outside the gas concentration difference conversion section housing, which may be used to keep a temperature of the gas flowing through the capillary laminar flow unit and the flow limiting element substantially constant. The flow limiting element is installed at an outlet of the circular flow channel in the gas concentration difference conversion section housing, an inlet of the flow limiting element is adjacent to a side of the capillary laminar flow unit, an outlet of the flow limiting element is connected to an inlet of the gas flow temperature measuring section, an inlet of the flow indicator is connected to an outlet of the gas flow temperature measuring section, and the outlet of the flow indicator is connected to a gas outlet of a gas concentration sensor. The capillary laminar flow unit is used to form differential pressures at both ends of the capillary laminar flow unit when the gas flows therethrough; the flow limiting element is used to maintain a constant volume flow flowing through the device for measuring a gas concentration; the differential pressure measuring hole is used to measure differential pressure values before and after the capillary laminar flow unit; the gas flow temperature measuring section is used to measure a temperature of the gas flowing through the flow limiting element; the heating element is used to keep a temperature of the gas flowing through the capillary laminar flow unit and the flow limiting element substantially constant; the flow indicator is used to display a state of the gas flowing through the differential pressure conversion module; the differential pressure conversion module housing is used to install the capillary laminar flow unit, the flow limiting element and the heating element, and is used to provide the differential pressure measuring hole.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, a pressure measuring pipeline connected to two differential pressure measuring holes on the differential pressure conversion module should have an equal length, and the pressure measuring pipeline is made of a material with a poor heat conduction.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, axes of the gas preheating module gas flow channel, the capillary laminar flow unit in the differential pressure conversion module, the flow limiting element, and the gas flow channel in the gas temperature measuring section are preferably located on the same straight line, and a cross section through which the gas flows in the flow channel is circular.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, an outer wall of the capillary laminar flow unit is fitted with an inner wall of the circular flow channel in the gas concentration difference conversion section housing during assembly.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the capillary laminar flow unit is composed of a circular tubular outer wall and a circular capillary, a plurality of circular capillaries are arranged in a cylindrical outer wall, and the circular tubular outer wall is used to fix the circular capillary. A flow channel of the plurality of capillaries becomes a main channel of the gas flow, so as to form a laminar flow structure. A gap between the capillaries and a gap between the capillary and a sleeve is blocked by an adhesive, so that the gas flow rarely flows therethrough. An effective flow area of the gas pipeline before the gas enters the differential pressure conversion module is the same or approximately the same as an effective flow area of the capillary laminar flow unit.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the flow limiting element is used to maintain a constant gas volume flow by using a micro precision orifice structure.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the device for measuring a gas concentration is designed so that a ratio of absolute pressures at the gas outlet and at the gas inlet is not higher than 0.528.

2 FIG. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 As shown in, the device for measuring a gas concentration is composed of a housing base, a housing upper cover, a gas inlet and outlet panel, a gas inlet straight joint, a gas preheating module gas pipeline, a gas preheating module heating clamp block, a gas preheating module electric heating unit, a gas preheating module straight joint, a gas preheating module gas low heat conduction hose, a gas preheating module temperature measurement tee joint, and a gas preheating module thermocouple, a differential pressure conversion module housing, a differential pressure conversion module electric heating unit, a flow limiting element, a differential pressure measuring hole joint, an upstream differential pressure measurement hose, a downstream differential pressure measurement hose, a differential pressure sensor 90 degree elbow, a differential pressure sensor installing clip, a low heat conduction hose, a differential pressure conversion module temperature measurement tee, a differential pressure conversion module thermocouple, a differential pressure conversion module gas pipeline, a flowmeter joint, a flowmeter, a flowmeter installing clip, a front panel, a flowmeter-to-gas outlet connecting hose, a gas outlet panel installing straight joint, a three-hole current signal aviation plug, a two-hole power supply aviation plug, an electrical rear panel, a solid-state relay, a power supply terminal, a rocker switch, a preheating module temperature controller, a differential pressure conversion module temperature controllerand a differential pressure sensor.

3 FIG. 4 FIG. 13 12 12 13 15 As shown inand, the capillary laminar flow unitis installed inside the differential pressure conversion module housing, and a position relationship of the differential pressure conversion module housing, the capillary laminar flow unitand the flow limiting elementis provided.

1 2 1 2 1 2 2 1 The housing baseand the housing upper coverform a housing of the device for measuring a gas concentration, which is used to install and fix components of the device for measuring a gas concentration and protect the components from an impact damage. The housing baseand the housing upper coverare made of aluminum, which has a low cost and a good electromagnetic interference resistance. The housing baseand the housing upper covermay also be made of other lighter materials. The housing upper coveris fixed on the housing basethrough a screw.

3 1 4 30 3 The gas inlet and outlet panelis fixed on the housing basethrough the screw. The gas inlet and outlet panel is made of a stainless steel. The gas inlet straight jointand the gas outlet panel installing straight jointare installed and compressed on the gas inlet and outlet panelthrough a nut.

4 5 5 5 5 8 The gas inlet straight jointis connected to the gas preheating module gas pipelineby using a stainless steel ferrule. In order to improve a rectification and preheating effect of the gas preheating module gas pipelineon the gas flowing therethrough, a certain number of stainless steel capillary pipelines are fixed in the gas preheating module gas pipeline. A too thin diameter of the capillary pipeline may cause a too high flow resistance. A selection of a diameter and a length of the capillary pipeline should be designed with a comprehensive consideration of a gas flow and a preheating effect. A gas outlet end of the gas preheating module gas pipelineis connected to the gas preheating module straight jointthrough a ferrule.

6 5 6 5 6 5 6 1 Two gas preheating module heating clamp blocksclamp the gas preheating module gas pipelinethrough a semicircular groove in the middle of an inner side of the gas preheating module heating clamp blocks, and clamp the gas preheating module gas pipelinetightly through a bolt. A gap between the gas preheating module heating clamp blockand the gas preheating module gas pipelineis filled with a thermally conductive silicone grease. In order to prevent components from shaking, the gas preheating module heating clamp blockis fixed on the housing basethrough the screw.

7 6 7 6 7 7 The gas preheating module electric heating unitis installed outside the two gas preheating module heating clamp blocks. A preferred installation method is to stick the gas preheating module electric heating unitto an outer side of the gas preheating module heating clamp blockthrough a heat-resistant adhesive. The gas preheating module electric heating unitis coated with an insulating material to prevent a heat from spreading outward. The gas preheating module electric heating unitis preferably a product below 24V, so as to improve a safety of the device for measuring a gas concentration.

8 10 21 21 5 6 10 The gas preheating module straight jointis connected to the gas preheating module temperature measurement tee jointthrough the low heat conduction hose, and a connection mode therebetween is a ferrule. The low heat conduction hoseis not only used to provide a path for a gas to flow, but also used to reduce a heat transfer from the gas preheating module gas pipelineand the gas preheating module heating clamp blockto the gas preheating module temperature measurement tee joint, and to reduce an installation inconvenience caused by a processing tolerance through a hose connection.

10 11 11 11 37 7 34 35 An end of the gas preheating module temperature measurement tee jointperpendicular to a gas flow direction is used to install the gas preheating module thermocouple. The gas preheating module thermocoupleis used to measure a temperature of a gas flow flowing at the gas preheating module temperature measurement tee joint. The gas preheating module thermocouple, the preheating module temperature controller, the gas preheating module electric heating unit, the solid-state relay, the power supply terminaland lines connected therebetween form a temperature control loop, which controls and regulates the temperature of the gas flow flowing at the gas preheating module temperature measurement tee joint.

10 12 1 12 13 12 12 2 12 15 14 12 3 12 4 12 16 4 FIG. 3 FIG. In order to reduce a volume, the gas preheating module temperature measurement tee jointis connected to a gas flow inlet-of the differential pressure conversion module housingthrough a thread, as shown in. The capillary laminar flow unitis installed in a flow channel of the differential pressure conversion module housing. A gas flow outlet-of the differential pressure conversion module housingis connected to the flow limiting elementthrough the thread, as shown in. The differential pressure conversion module electric heating unitis installed on an outer wall of the differential pressure conversion module housing. An upstream differential pressure measuring hole-and a downstream differential pressure measuring hole-of the differential pressure conversion module housingare connected to two differential pressure measuring hole jointsthrough the thread.

16 17 18 17 18 39 19 17 18 39 1 20 The two differential pressure measuring hole jointsare connected to the upstream differential pressure measuring hoseand the downstream differential pressure measuring hoserespectively through the ferrule. The above-mentioned two pressure measuring hosesandare connected two differential pressure measuring holes of the differential pressure sensorthrough the differential pressure sensor 90 degree elbow. The upstream differential pressure measuring hoseand the downstream differential pressure measuring hosehave the same length, and are preferably hoses with a poor heat conductivity. The differential pressure sensoris fixed on the housing baseby the differential pressure sensor installing clip.

15 22 21 21 21 12 22 The flow limiting elementis connected to the differential pressure conversion module temperature measuring teethrough the low heat conduction hose, and both ends of the low heat conduction hoseare connected by the ferrule. The hoseis not only used to provide the path for the gas to flow, but also used to reduce a heat transfer from the differential pressure conversion module housingto the differential pressure conversion module temperature measurement tee, and reduce the installation inconvenience caused by the processing tolerance through the hose connection.

22 23 23 22 23 38 14 34 35 22 An end of the differential pressure conversion module temperature measurement teeperpendicular to the gas flow direction is used to install the differential pressure conversion module thermocouple. The differential pressure conversion module thermocoupleis used to measure a temperature of a gas flow flowing through the differential pressure conversion module temperature measurement tee. The differential pressure conversion module thermocouple, the differential pressure conversion module temperature controller, the differential pressure conversion module electric heating unit, the solid-state relay, the power supply terminaland lines connected therebetween form a temperature control loop to control and regulate the temperature of the gas flow flowing at the differential pressure conversion module temperature measurement tee.

22 24 24 26 25 26 28 27 28 1 26 29 25 29 30 4 30 A gas flow outlet end of the differential pressure conversion module temperature measurement teeis connected to the differential pressure conversion module gas pipeline, and the pipelineis connected to a gas inlet end of the flowmeterthrough a flowmeter joint. The flowmeteris fixed on the front panelthrough the flowmeter installing clip. The front panelis fixed on the housing baseby the screw. A gas outlet end of the flowmeteris connected to the flowmeter-to-gas outlet connecting hosethrough another flowmeter joint. The other end of hoseis connected to the gas outlet panel installing straight joint. So far, through a plurality of elements, the gas inlet straight jointand the gas outlet panel installing straight jointform a path for a gas to flow. When the gas flows through the path, a gas volume concentration may be converted into a differential pressure signal.

36 37 38 28 26 36 37 38 The rocker switch, the preheating module temperature controllerand the differential pressure conversion module temperature controllerare all fixed on the front panel. The flowmeter, the rocker switch, the preheating module temperature controllerand the differential pressure conversion module temperature controllerare all installed on a panel on one side, so as to facilitate a user operation.

31 32 33 33 1 32 35 36 36 The three-hole current signal aviation plugand the two-hole power supply aviation plugare installed on the electrical rear panelthrough the screw, and the electrical rear panelis installed on the housing basethrough the screw. The three-hole current signal aviation plug is used to transmit a current signal generated by a differential pressure sensor. The two-hole power supply aviation plugis used for power supply and is connected to the power supply terminaland the rocker switch. The rocker switchmay control a switch of an electrical portion of the whole device for measuring a gas concentration.

5 FIG. 6 FIG. 13 1 13 2 13 3 13 1 13 2 13 3 In such embodiments, as shown inand, a capillary-is fixed by sleeves (including a first sleeve-and a second sleeve-), so that any capillary may not move under an action of a possible gas flow. A length of the capillary-is equal to a sum of lengths of the sleeve-and the sleeve-.

V LFE According to embodiments of the present disclosure, a dynamic viscosity of the to-be-measured gas is μ, a density of the to-be-measured gas is ρ, a number of the capillaries is n, a Reynolds number is Re, and Qis a flow; an inner diameter dof a single capillary is expressed by:

LFE LFE 0 V 0 0 Due to a process limitation, a range of dselected in a project is preferably in a range of 0.2 mm to 1 mm; in order to reduce a fluctuation degree of a measured value, a value of Re is less than 800; the number n of the capillaries and the inner diameter dof the capillaries are determined through the above-mentioned formula and parameters, that is, a cross-section structure of the capillary laminar flow unit may be determined. A differential pressure value conversion coefficient Kper unit length under the flow Qmay be measured through an experiment, a length of the capillary laminar flow unit is L, so that a differential pressure generated by the capillary laminar flow unit is ΔP=KL. A value of ΔP may be determined according to an effective range of a sensor selected for measuring a differential pressure, so that the length of the capillary laminar flow unit may be determined according to L=ΔP/K.

2 2 The number of the capillaries is 139, and the capillary has an inner diameter of 0.4 mm, a wall thickness of 0.1 mm, and a length of 70 mm. A flow area of all the capillaries is about 17.5 mm, and a flow area of a front-end gas inlet pipeline is about 16.4 mm, and both of the areas are similar to each other.

13 1 6 FIG. If the capillary-may not be completely fixed by a mechanical force between components, an adhesive resistant to a high temperature (for example, a temperature of no less than 120° C.) may be coated on an outer wall of the capillary and an inner wall of the sleeve. The adhesive used may not react with a measured gas.shows a schematic diagram of an assembled capillary laminar flow unit. An end face of a capillary bundle may be as flush as possible with an end face of the sleeve.

Further, in embodiments of the present disclosure, some control board cards may be installed inside the device for measuring a gas concentration. The control board card inside the device for measuring a gas concentration may convert a differential pressure signal into a concentration signal, and transmit the concentration signal to an upper computer control software in a form of a digital signal. A small display screen is installed on the housing to display a concentration value on the device for measuring a gas concentration. The control card board may also control an operation of the heating element according to a temperature value of the gas. In such embodiments, the device for measuring a gas concentration may have a stronger data processing and display capability. Using of a digital signal output may be more conducive to a signal transmission, and applicable to an application scenario of a distributed arrangement of the device for measuring a gas concentration.

Further, in embodiments of the present disclosure, the gas preheating module and the differential pressure conversion module may be manufactured into an integral portion by a fine machining, so as to replace discrete components, which may further reduce a volume of an equipment, reduce a fluctuation of the gas flowing, and reduce a difficulty of an assembly. For example, such embodiments disclose a structure of the gas preheating module and the differential pressure conversion module, and the structure is more compact and more accurate, and is more conducive to a comprehensive analysis of a measured result.

7 FIG. 61 64 65 62 64 63 According to embodiments of the present disclosure, as shown in, the gas preheating module includes a gas inlet straight joint, a gas preheating module gas pipeline, and a gas preheating module temperature measurement tee joint; a gas preheating module heating clamp blockis installed outside the gas preheating module gas pipelineto heat a fluid in the gas pipeline. In order to improve a heating effect, the gas preheating module heating clamp block and an electric heating silicone pad installing grooveare machined on a surface of the gas preheating module heating clamp block.

69 72 74 67 70 69 66 68 71 69 67 70 66 68 68 71 The differential pressure conversion module includes a differential pressure conversion module housing, a micropore flow limiting elementand a differential pressure conversion module temperature measuring teewhich are sequentially connected through the ferrule and the thread; an upstream differential pressure measuring hole jointand a downstream differential pressure measuring hole jointare installed on an upper portion of the differential pressure conversion module housingthrough the thread. An upstream capillary rectifying element, a capillary laminar flow unitand a downstream capillary rectifying elementare installed in a gas flow channel in a middle portion of the differential pressure conversion module housingin the gas flow direction. Projection positions of pressure measuring holes of the upstream differential pressure measuring hole jointand the downstream differential pressure measuring hole jointin the gas flow channel are located betweenandand betweenand, respectively.

66 67 72 72 71 A function of the added upstream capillary rectifying elementis to perform flow conditioning on a gas flowing therethrough and reduce a fluctuation of a measured pressure at. When the gas flow flows through the micropore flow limiting element, a pressure fluctuation may occur at a pressure measuring hole at an upstream of the micropore flow limiting elementdue to a sudden decreased size of an orifice plate with respect to a sectional area of an upstream gas flow channel. A function of the downstream capillary rectifying elementis to reduce the pressure fluctuation and thus improve a measurement accuracy.

66 71 66 71 In embodiments of the present disclosure, a length of the upstream capillary rectifying elementand the downstream capillary rectifying elementis 15 mm. Each of the upstream capillary rectifying elementand the downstream capillary rectifying elementis composed of 139 capillaries with an inner diameter of 0.4 mm, a wall thickness of 0.1 mm, and a length of 15 mm. A cannula with an outer diameter of 10 mm and a wall thickness of 1 mm is installed outside the capillary. A length of the cannula is also 15 mm. An end face of the cannula is flush with an end face of an internal capillary.

68 68 68 66 71 2 2 The capillary laminar flow unitis composed of 139 capillaries with an inner diameter of 0.4 mm, a wall thickness of 0.1 mm and a length of 70 mm. Two cannulas with an outer diameter of 10 mm, a wall thickness of 1 mm and a length of 35 mm are installed outside the capillary laminar flow unit. A gap between the capillaries is sealed with an adhesive, and the capillaries are fixed in the cannula so that the capillaries may not move. A capillary effective flow area of the capillary laminar flow unit, the upstream capillary rectifying elementand the downstream capillary rectifying elementis 17.5 mm. The capillary effective flow area is close to a flow area (16.4 mm) of a gas inlet pipeline at a front-end gas preheating module temperature measurement tee joint, which may be conducive to reducing a pressure fluctuation caused by a gas flowing.

67 In order to improve the measurement accuracy and an availability, an absolute pressure in the gas flow channel is measured at a position of the pressure measuring hole upstream of the differential pressure conversion module. In such embodiments, an absolute pressure gauge is provided at the upstream differential pressure measuring hole jointto monitor an absolute pressure value in the gas flow channel. The absolute pressure value may be used to correct a relationship between a differential pressure and a concentration. A typical application scenario is that a pressure value at a measuring point may change during an aerial flight test of an extinguishing agent concentration in an aircraft engine compartment, which is different from an ambient pressure when a ground sensor is calibrated. At this time, the relationship between the differential pressure and the concentration may be corrected through the absolute pressure value in the flow channel.

67 70 Another function of the absolute pressure value is to determine and correct a validity of measured data. A typical application scenario is that when an extinguishing agent in a measured space suddenly sprays, a pressure at the measuring point may increase. In some cases, an increase of the pressure may be transmitted to the upstream differential pressure measuring hole joint, while a pressure at the downstream differential pressure measuring hole jointhas not increased, which may lead to an error. At this time, if the absolute pressure gauge detects an abrupt change or abnormal increase in pressure, it may be determined that a differential pressure value at this time is abnormal through an algorithm, and then the differential pressure value is corrected, for example, a difference of absolute pressure rise is subtracted in a differential pressure conversion.

8 FIG. In embodiments of the present disclosure, as shown in, an assembly of a plurality of heat insulation panels is provided outside the structure of the gas preheating module and the differential pressure conversion module. The assembly of the heat insulation panels may effectively reduce a heat diffusion of an electric heating element, reduce an impact of an environment on a measurement, and protect the gas preheating module and the differential pressure conversion module from a damage caused by a mechanical force and a vibration.

Further, in embodiments of the present disclosure, a size of the device for measuring a gas concentration may be further reduced by means of micro-electromechanical. A device for measuring a differential pressure gas concentration is installed on a circuit board. The gas preheating module and the differential pressure conversion module having projected areas not exceeding an area of the circuit board, and are fixed on the circuit board and the housing. The circuit board is provided with a temperature measurement and temperature control circuit to realize a temperature control of a gas in the gas preheating module and the differential pressure conversion module. A volume size of the device for measuring a gas concentration may be controlled to be no more than a length of 10 cm, a height of 5 cm and a width of 4 cm. Such embodiments may be used in an application with a strict size requirement, such as a real-time monitoring of a certain gas concentration in the equipment.

9 FIG. 10 FIG. 14 FIG. The present disclosure further provides a system of measuring a gas concentration. As shown in,and, the system of measuring the gas concentration is composed of the device for measuring a gas concentration and a control device. The device for measuring a gas concentration is connected to the control device through a signal transmission line and an electrical line.

The system of measuring the gas concentration includes: at least one device for measuring a gas concentration used to convert the gas concentration into an electrical signal.

The control device is used for a communication and a power supply with the device for measuring a gas concentration and to convert the electrical signal generated by the device for measuring a gas concentration into a concentration value.

11 FIG. According to embodiments of the present disclosure, as shown in, the control device may be operated, so that an empirical relationship between a gas volume concentration and a differential pressure value may be determined for the to-be-measured gas. The relationship between the gas volume concentration and the differential pressure value is described by a quadratic exponential decay curve.

The measuring device is connected to the control device through the electrical line. The measuring device transmits a measuring signal to the control device. The control device processes the measuring signal and converts the measuring signal into a concentration signal, and outputs the concentration signal through I/O equipment. The control device supplies power to the measuring device and controls a working state of the measuring device.

9 FIG. 10 FIG. 40 41 40 41 40 40 As shown inand, eight devicesof measuring a gas concentration are installed in a cabinet through a fixing plug-in boxfor the device for measuring a gas concentration. A fixed trench of the deviceof measuring the gas concentration is reserved on the fixing plug-in boxfor the device for measuring a gas concentration, and a gap between trenches is reserved for an air circulation. The gap may allow a ventilation gas flow to flow therethrough and prevent a heat emitted by the deviceof measuring the gas concentration from interfering with other devicesof measuring a gas concentration.

42 42 41 40 A cooling and ventilating equipment plug-in boxis installed on the fixing plug-in box for the device for measuring a gas concentration. The cooling and ventilating equipment plug-in boxgenerates a gas flow blown into the fixing plug-in boxfor the device for measuring a gas concentration to prevent a temperature interference generated between the devicesof measuring the gas concentration.

43 42 44 43 44 A keyboard/mouse trayis installed on an upper portion of the cooling and ventilating equipment plug-in box. A control device plug-in boxis installed on an upper portion of the keyboard/mouse tray. The control device is installed inside the control device plug-in box.

45 44 46 45 46 A displayis installed on an upper portion of the control device plug-in box, and a power supply plug-in boxis installed on an upper portion of the display. The power supply plug-in boxis used to safely supply power to all powered equipments in the cabinet.

48 41 48 41 48 A cabinet reserved spaceis located at a lower portion of the fixing plug-in boxfor the device for measuring a gas concentration. In such embodiments, the cabinet reserved spacemay be used to install another fixing plug-in boxfor the device for measuring a gas concentration, and expand a number of the devices of measuring the gas concentration to 16. In some applications, the cabinet reserved spaceis used to install a printer and a maintenance tool kit, so as to improve a usability of the system.

52 47 50 47 51 50 51 51 1 51 2 51 3 51 4 4 30 51 4 Two side access doorsare provided on two sides of a cabinet, a rear access dooris provided on a rear portion of the cabinet, and an interface panelis installed below the rear access door. The interface panelis provided with a power output installing hole-and a power input connector installing hole-, eight cabinet gas inlet bulkhead joints-, and eight cabinet gas outlet bulkhead joints-. The joints are connected to the gas inlet straight jointand the gas outlet panel installing straight jointon the device for measuring a gas concentration through pipes, respectively. The connection solution may effectively reduce a complexity of a system connection in a test and avoid a damage to the device for measuring a gas concentration. In some applications, if a pollutant, such as dust, etc., that may enter a gas pipeline may exist in a test space, a filter may be installed on the gas pipeline between the interface paneland the gas inlet straight jointto prevent the pollutant from entering the device for measuring a gas concentration to cause a blockage.

12 FIG. 1 3 The present disclosure further provides a method for measuring a gas concentration, as shown in. The method for measuring a gas concentration includes operations Sto S.

1 In operation S, a preheating treatment is performed on the device for measuring a gas concentration.

2 In operation S, the to-be-measured gas in a space is inputted into the preheated device for measuring a gas concentration, and a differential pressure value is recorded.

3 In operation S, the concentration of the to-be-measured gas is determined according to the differential pressure value and an empirical relationship between a volume concentration of the to-be-measured gas and the differential pressure value.

1 11 12 According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the operation Sincludes: operations Sto S.

11 In operation S, a to-be-measured gas with a concentration of 0 or a known concentration is injected into the device for measuring a gas concentration.

12 In operation S, a heating is performed through a preheating module electric heating unit and a differential pressure conversion module electric heating unit, so that temperature values measured by a preheating module thermocouple and a differential pressure conversion module thermocouple are stable and the same, so as to complete the preheating treatment.

13 FIG. 101 106 According to embodiments of the present disclosure, more specifically, as shown in, the method for measuring a gas concentration may include stepsto.

101 In step, a test point in a test space is connected to a device for measuring a gas concentration by using a gas pipeline.

102 In step, whether a status of a gas flowing through the device for measuring a gas concentration is normal is checked.

103 In step, the device for measuring a gas concentration is preheated to a set temperature, and an output signal of the measuring device is checked.

104 In step, the device for measuring a gas concentration is calibrated by using a target gas with a known concentration.

105 In step, a test is carried out and data is recorded.

106 In step, after the test is completed, the device for measuring a gas concentration is cooled and a residual gas in the measuring device is purged.

101 4 30 In the step, the gas pipeline is connected and checked. According to a test-site condition, the test site in the test space is connected to a gas inlet joint of a corresponding device for measuring a gas concentration on the cabinet by using a gas pipeline with the same length and specification, and whether the gas inlet joint of the corresponding device for measuring a gas concentration on the cabinet is correctly connected to the gas inlet straight jointof the device for measuring a gas concentration is checked. A gas outlet joint of a gas cabinet on the cabinet is connected to a vacuum pump by using the gas pipeline with the same length and specification, and whether the gas outlet joint of the corresponding device for measuring a gas concentration on the cabinet is correctly connected to the gas outlet panel installing straight jointof the device for measuring a gas concentration is checked.

102 26 In the step, the gas flowing status is checked. A vacuum pump is turned on, and whether the gas flowing status in each device for measuring a gas concentration is normal and whether a gas leakage and a blockage occur are checked through a vacuum gauge on the vacuum pump and the flowmeteron the device for measuring a gas concentration. A maintenance may be performed if any problem occurs. The process may proceed to the next step after confirming that no problem occurs.

103 In the step, the device for measuring a gas concentration is preheated, and the output signal of the device for measuring a gas concentration is checked. When the gas flows normally from the device for measuring a gas concentration, the control device is turned on, the output signal of the device for measuring a gas concentration is collected, and a heating of each device for measuring a gas concentration is started. At this time, the gas entering the device for measuring a gas concentration should be a to-be-measured target gas with a concentration of 0 or a known concentration. When temperature values measured by the gas preheating module thermocouple and the differential pressure conversion module thermocouple of each device for measuring a gas concentration are stable and the same, the preheating of the device for measuring a gas concentration is completed. At this time, whether the output signal of the device for measuring a gas concentration collected by the control device is stable is checked. The process may proceed to the next step when the signal of the device for measuring a gas concentration is stable.

104 In the step, a relationship between a differential pressure and a concentration of the device for measuring a gas concentration is calibrated. A target gas with a known concentration is placed at the test point in the test space, and the gas may be inhaled into the gas pipeline and then flow into the device for measuring a gas concentration. The target gas with the known concentrations may be stored in a gas sampling bag or storage tank. It should be noted that an environmental condition in which the target gas with the known concentration enters the gas pipeline should be similar to a test environment as much as possible, or an impact of different test environments should be avoided through a reasonable design, which may improve a calibration accuracy. When the target gas with the known concentration flows through the device for measuring a gas concentration, the output signal of the device for measuring a gas concentration may change, and a change value may be recorded. The process is repeated to acquire corresponding data points between a signal of the device for measuring a gas concentration and a gas concentration. The data points are fit by using an empirical model, so as to acquire a corresponding relationship between the signal of the device for measuring a gas concentration and the gas concentration. In many cases, only a few points, instead of all points, need to be calibrated every time, and the corresponding relationship may be acquired through a known empirical model fitting. When environmental conditions, such as a temperature and a humidity of a laboratory, are similar to test conditions, an existing corresponding relationship may also be used, that is, the step may be skipped.

105 Step, the test is carried out. After a test preparation is completed in the test space, the test is started, and the control device records a curve of target gas concentrations at a plurality of measuring points varying with time.

106 In step, the test is completed and the system is turned off. After the test is completed, test data is saved and the heating of the device for measuring a gas concentration is turned off. At this time, a gas is continuously injected into the device for measuring a gas concentration to cool heated elements in the device for measuring a gas concentration. When the temperature values measured by the gas preheating module thermocouple and the differential pressure conversion module thermocouple of the device for measuring a gas concentration decreases to an acceptable level, the vacuum pump is turned off. If the target gas is toxic or corrosive, it is required to ensure that the target gas in the device for measuring a gas concentration and the gas pipeline has been cleaned by air before the vacuum pump is turned off. Finally, the control device is turned off. If the test is not carried out for a long time, the gas inlet on the cabinet should be blocked after the system is turned off, so as to prevent an entry of the pollutant, such as dust, etc.

The present disclosure provides a device and method for measuring a gas concentration, which have a high measurement accuracy, may be calibrated, have a good repeatability, may adapt to a change in a test environmental factor, may be used to analyze whether the gas concentration meets a demand, and have a broad application prospect.

Compared with a traditional device and method for measuring a gas concentration, the device and method for measuring a gas concentration in the present disclosure have a fast response speed, a high measurement accuracy, a good long-term stability, and a convenient use and maintenance, and may be used for both a rapid measurement of the gas concentration and a long-term monitoring of the gas concentration.

Those skilled in the art may clearly understand that, for the convenience and brevity of the description, only a division of the above-mentioned functional modules is taken as an example for description. In a practical application, the above-mentioned functions are assigned to be completed by different functional modules as required, that is, an internal structure of the device is divided into different functional modules to complete all or part of the above-mentioned described functions. A specific working process of the above-mentioned device will not be repeated here, please refer to the corresponding process in the above-mentioned method embodiments.

Finally, it should be noted that: the above-mentioned embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solution of the present disclosure, and are not intended to limit the technical solution of the present disclosure. Although the present disclosure has been described in detail with reference to the above-mentioned embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that: they may still make modifications to the technical solution recited in the above-mentioned embodiments, or make equivalent substitutions to some or all of the technical features. In a case of no conflict, features in embodiments of the present disclosure may be arbitrarily combined. These modifications or substitutions do not make the essence of corresponding technical solutions depart from the scope of the technical solution of embodiments of the present disclosure.